


A Different Kind of Adventure

by electrictoes



Series: Adventure 'Verse [1]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-03-24
Updated: 2009-04-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 07:02:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28988220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/electrictoes/pseuds/electrictoes
Summary: For a couple who've battled Cybermen, fought Daleks and crossed voids, a holiday with with a four year old is going to be a piece of cake. Right?
Relationships: Metacrisis Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler
Series: Adventure 'Verse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2126433





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted to livejournal

The Doctor waited patiently by the door as Rose let them in to the Tyler mansion; neither Rose nor himself particularly liked being let in by a butler any more than they had taken to being waited on by servants. As soon as they stepped into the overly grand entrance room the Doctor felt a desire to run back down the path as he heard the sound of Jackie screeching, accompanied by a crash which meant that something no doubt expensive had been broken. It was easy for him to picture Pete, hands in the air, attempting to calm her down. The Doctor had absolutely no desire to swap places with him.

His retreat was stopped only by the appearance of a small person with light red hair and his thumb in his mouth. Tony Tyler did not look happy and Rose had instantly swept him up into her arms. The second he felt the comfort of his sister’s embrace Tony tugged his thumb from his mouth, resting his head on her shoulder sadly. He looked at the Doctor as though he held the answers to all of his questions.

“Mummy’s angry.” He told them.

The Doctor nodded. “Sounds like it.”

“Are we going now?” This was directed to Rose, he’d pushed back from her shoulders to look at her face. He was clearly desperate to spend his time somewhere that wasn’t home.

Rose stroked his hair softly. “We are. Do you want to go and get your rucksack?” She returned Tony to the ground and he climbed the stairs, no doubt heading towards his bedroom.

The Doctor wound his arms around Rose’s waist supportively. “You okay?”

“Mmmhmm.” She leaned back into him. “The sooner we get out of here the better though.”

“When we get back everything’ll be fine. They just need time on their own to...” He trailed off at the sound of crockery breaking. “To... sort things out.”

“Yeah, I know.” Rose slid from his arms. “I’m going to go brave the warzone. You go find Tony and get his suitcase, yeah?”

He reluctantly let her go and ascended the stairs himself, walking to Tony’s room. The door was ajar and Tony was standing beside his bed, trying to lift a suitcase that was almost as tall as he was.

“Shall I get that?”

Tony shook his head. “I can do it!”

“I’m sure you can. But you can’t carry a suitcase and unlock the car door at the same time, can you?”

“I can unlock the car?” Tony released the handle of the suitcase and turned towards him looking hopeful. Reaching inside his pocket the Doctor withdrew the car keys and handed them to Tony carefully.

“You get your teddy and I’ll get the suitcase and we’ll go wait in the car for Rose, how’s that?”

Tony looked thoughtful for a moment, gripping onto the car keys as though his life depended upon them. “I need to say goodbye to Mummy and Daddy.”

The Doctor had hoped he wouldn’t say that. “Okay then, but you’re going in first.” They shared a grin and after the Doctor had lifted the suitcase and Tony’s Bob the Builder rucksack, they left the room together. As they walked down the stairs, the Doctor was pleased to note that Jackie appeared to have calmed down enough to stop shouting. And throwing things. Tony opened the door to the living room and, leaving the luggage outside, the Doctor followed him.

“Oh here’s himself.” Jackie said, rolling her eyes.

The Doctor ignored her in favour of watching Tony, who excitedly wiggled the car keys in front of his father. “Dad, look what I’ve got!”

Pete laughed, ruffled his son’s hair and turned to the Doctor. “You’re sure you’re happy to have him?”

“Yeah.” He smiled. “It’ll be fun, I’ve never been on a proper holiday. Never stayed still long enough.”

“Well, there’s a surprise.” Jackie cut it. “You just take care of my kids. I want them both back in a week, not twelve months.”

“Much harder to make that mistake when you’re travelling by car, Jackie.”

“Yes, well.” She sighed. “Thank you. Both of you.”

The Doctor slipped his hand into Rose’s while Jackie smothered Tony with kisses and told him fourteen times to behave himself. He couldn’t work out why she was making such a fuss; they weren’t going to have him away that long and he was a good kid, how hard could a holiday with a four year old be, exactly?

“Right!” He beamed at them. “Time for the travellers to head off.”

“Doctor?” Tony said, as Rose ushered him out the door. “Will it take hours?”

“Three hours, thirty eight minutes. About. It depends on how many times we stop for you to go to the toilet and how many people are driving like idiots today.”

“Okay.” He skipped forward towards the door, but turned as the Doctor reached down for his suitcase. “Doctor?”

“Yes?”

“Can I drive?”

Rose cut in before the Doctor could respond. “I don’t think that’s a good idea, little brother.”

“Oh, Rose.” Tony sighed dramatically. He bounced down the front steps and raced over to the car, where he giddily pressed the button on the keys which would unlock the door, before clambering into the back and onto the car seat that Rose had purchased specifically for their car. He had clicked in his seatbelt buckle by the time the Doctor reached him and lifted his hands happily while the Doctor double-checked it. “It’s exciting.” He whispered conspiratorially. The Doctor smiled. It was a bit.

“What are you two whispering about?” Rose asked with a grin as she put Tony’s rucksack and teddy on the seat beside him.

“Nothing.” Said the Doctor.

While Tony gleefully shouted, “boy stuff!”

Rose shook her head and moved around the car and into the passenger seat. Once the Doctor had loaded Tony’s suitcase beside their own in the boot he moved around to get into the car. He reached behind him expectantly when he had sat down. “Tony, can I have my keys?”

“Oh. Can’t I keep them?” Tony looked so heartbreakingly disappointed that the Doctor couldn’t bear to take them away, he pulled out his sonic screwdriver and started the car up himself at the same time as Rose tried to explain why the Doctor needed his keys back. Rose turned back to face the front looking somewhat put out as they head off down the drive and towards the motorway.

For the first ten minutes of the journey all was fine. Rose flicked through the documents the caravan park had sent them for the fourteenth time, Tony was drawing pictures in the sketch pad Rose had stored in the back of the car and the Doctor was happy to be driving them away from the city for their own adventure. He had been almost as excited as Tony about their little holiday. The whole thing had been Rose’s idea. Jackie and Pete needed some time together without Tony, the Doctor needed some time away from Torchwood and Rose had been saddened that all of Tony’s holidays were the lavish vacations of the rich and famous, and not the non-stop fun, cheap and cheerful holidays she remembered from her own childhood. So here they were, on their way to a holiday park in East Devon.

But the first ten minutes of contentment had passed away. “Are we there?” Tony started. Rose sighed.

“Not yet, Tony. Not even nearly there.”

A sigh came from the back of the car. “Okay.”

After another twenty minutes Rose too began to grow restless, tapping her fingers on the dashboard while Tony sung nursery rhymes at the top of his voice. The Doctor continued on, thinking longingly back to the days when travelling across a country would take only a few seconds. After a further hour of Rose and Tony’s irritable impatience he pulled over at the motorway services, hopping out of the car and coming around the car to first open the passenger door for his lady love and secondly to release Tony from the restraints of his car seat. They both looked at him expectantly and he grinned.

“Who fancies a milkshake?”

As Tony skipped excitedly towards the Little Chef Rose slid her hand into the Doctor’s, resting her head on his shoulder in a familiar gesture he never tired of. He planted a kiss on her forehead and they headed into the restaurant behind their charge.

A waitress greeted them with a tired smile. “How many?”

“Three!” Tony exclaimed and then pointed first to Rose, then the Doctor, then himself. “One, two, three!”

“Alright Tony, calm down, eh?” Rose said quietly, ruffling his hair affectionately. The Doctor laughed and the two of them followed Tony, who appeared to be leading the waitress as well, to a booth by the window. They watched as he climbed onto the seat, before sliding in opposite him. The Doctor was enjoying himself already; Tony’s energy was infectious and he loved seeing the smiles that Rose reserved for her little brother, they shot straight to his single heart and he found himself resisting the urge to take her in his arms and kiss her into oblivion.

“I want chocolate.” Tony announced suddenly, returning everyone’s attention to him. “And he wants banana.” He pointed at the Doctor and Rose muttered something about predictability.

“I didn’t say that was what I wanted.”

“What do you want?” Rose asked, humouring him.

“Um...banana.”

By the time the waitress had brought their drinks over Rose and Tony were engrossed in the kids’ pack they had been given, playing Spot the Difference with matching grins on their faces. The Doctor smiled as the waitress deposited the milkshakes on the table, pushing Tony’s chocolate and Rose’s strawberry to one side while they carried on with their puzzles. They whispered to each other for a moment or two before seizing their milkshakes, pulling out the straws and moving them into the Doctor’s own milkshake. Tony was almost lying on the table by this point, but no one was paying them any attention as they drank from the Doctor’s glass gleefully. It took one minute and thirty eight seconds for the Doctor to call over the waitress and order a second milkshakes, and another fifty four seconds for Rose and Tony to polish off his first one.

Four milkshakes ordered, drunk and paid for later and they were on their way back to the car. The Doctor had taken Tony to the toilet on their way out and had almost ended up with a four year old locked in a toilet cubicle, having ignored Rose’s warning not to let him lock the door, but he’d had his sonic screwdriver handy and Rose needn’t find out about it, he thought as he lifted Tony into his car seat. Rose buckled him up this time, while the Doctor checked the SatNav and informed them they were almost halfway there.

They stopped for lunch an hour later and for coffee – another chocolate milkshake for Tony – half an hour away from the holiday park, and arrived at their destination nearly two hours later than the Doctor’s initial estimate. Still, it hadn’t been a bad journey, all in all. Tony had only asked if they were nearly there thirty seven times, which in the scheme of things wasn’t that many.

The three of them walked into the reception together upon arrival. Tony clung to the Doctor’s hand and pointed out all of the places he wanted to visit on the leaflet rack. Rose walked up to the desk to check them in and was greeted by a cheerful young woman.

“Hello, how can I help?”

“Hello. We’ve got a caravan booked-” She stopped when she heard an excited squeal from Tony and turned to see the Doctor had lifted him into the air and was swinging him about with joy. “Not now, come on, put him down.” She insisted. The Doctor shared a looked with Tony and quickly deposited the youngest Tyler back onto his feet. “Sorry about that.” Rose turned back to the woman. “Yes, we’ve got a caravan booked under Smith.”

The woman typed their name into her computer and smiled. “Smith. John?”

“Yeah, that’s him.” Rose thumbed behind her to where the Doctor and Tony were picking out the leaflets Tony had been pointing to earlier.

“Have you got your paperwork?” Rose handed it over to the woman and watched as she skimmed through the various bits of their information pack.

“You’ve got a Budleigh two bedroom booked, yes?”

Rose nodded. The woman began to hand her various leaflets and other information.

“How many keys would you like?”

“Um, two’ll be fine.”

“I want my own key!” Tony called out, bouncing over to stand beside Rose at the reception desk. She laid a hand on his head softly.

“You don’t need your own key, sweetheart.”

“But I want one.”

The Doctor leaned down, his head next to Tony’s. “You can have mine.” He said with a grin. Tony smiled and threw his arms around the Doctor. Rose wondered if he wasn’t getting tired, it had been quite a long journey for such a small child.

“We’ve got wrist bands for the pool, those’ll get you in no problem. If you lose them or they get broken it’s 25p for a new one, just come down here and get one.”

“You hearing this you two,” Rose said with a smile, “you lose it and we’ll have to buy you a new one.”

The Doctor feigned a look of offence while Tony insisted he wouldn’t lose it. “Can we go to the pool now?”

“Not right now. We’ll go tomorrow, how’s that?”

“Maaaaybe.” Tony grinned.

“The opening and closing times of the pool, the restaurants and all of our other amenities are in your information pack. Can I ask how old your son is?”

Before Rose could respond Tony held four fingers in the air excitedly. “I’m four!” He told the woman proudly.

“We’ve got a kids’ club that runs from 10am, but as he’s under five you or your husband” – the Doctor looked up at that – “would need to stay with him.”

Rose poked the Doctor in the ribs. “You can take Tony while I have a lie in then.”

The woman behind the reception desk smiled. “That sounds like a good idea. Your caravan’s in Bay View, number 39, if you want to drive your car round. Just follow the signs. Check out’s at 10am next Saturday. Hope you enjoy your stay.” The woman handed the keys to Rose, who pocketed one and handed the other to Tony to play with. The Doctor gripped her hand on their way out, pausing in the doorway to kiss her.

She smiled as he pulled back. “What was that for?”

“Your husband, am I?”

“What?” Rose looked at him, puzzled.

“She thought we were married.”

“That’s not my fault.”

“You didn’t correct her.”

Rose reached out to grip Tony’s shoulder, gently preventing him from wandering off. She met the Doctor’s gaze. “Nor did you.”

“Maybe I didn’t want to.” He smirked, landed another kiss on her lips and headed back towards the car. Rose blinked twice before releasing Tony from her grip, allowing him to get back into the car. She slid in beside the Doctor and he threw her another smirk as he started up the engine. “You, Rose Tyler,” he looked at her for a second before turning his eyes back to the road “do shocked and confused very, very sexily.” With that he put his full concentration into following the signs for Bay View, not glancing in her direction again until they were parked and unloading the car. Even then, he was still smirking.


	2. Chapter 2

Sunday morning started with a four year old in their bed. Rose blinked awake as Tony’s cold feet hit hers and she turned her head to look at him. He grinned and snuggled in under her arm. The Doctor was lying on his front beside her, snoring lightly.

Tony giggled and moved his mouth to Rose’s ear, whispering, “He snores just like Daddy.”

“Yep, he does.”

“Can we wake him up?”

Rose looked over at the clock. It read 7:02. “It’s very early, Tony.”

“Please?”

Rose nodded and moved her arm back. “Go and lift the covers off his feet.”

Tony did as his sister suggested, giggling gleefully when the Doctor whimpered in his sleep, bending his knees, try get his feet back under the duvet. “Can I tickle him?”

Rose wrinkled her nose. “Do you really want to touch his smelly feet?”

Tony reached a small hand forward and began to tickle the Doctor’s feet. He moved them away in his sleep. Laughing, Rose sat up, reaching forward to seize the Doctor’s ankles and hold them in place for Tony’s tickle torture. After a few minutes their giggling had increased in volume and the Doctor blinked awake, twisting onto his back and looking up at them with bleary eyes. “What-?”

“Wakey wakey sleepyhead!” Tony bellowed, launching himself up the bed and onto the Doctor’s chest, gaining an ‘oomph’ in response.

Rose flopped back onto the mattress beside them, her head beside the Doctor’s while Tony wriggled into the space on the Doctor’s right, resting his head in the crook of his arm.

“Well,” the Doctor said when the Tylers’ laughter had died down, “that’s enough excitement for one day.”

“Is not!” Tony exclaimed, wriggling out of the Doctor’s grasp to sit up beside him, tugging on the small amount of duvet which still covered his body. “Up!”

Rose laughed as the Doctor turned towards her with a helpless expression on his face. “You heard the boy, up you get.”

“What about you?” The Doctor complained as he crawled out of bed.

“Not going anywhere without coffee and a kiss. Not necessarily in that order.”

They both laughed as Tony clambered across the bed and placed a sloppy, wet kiss on Rose’s cheek, before turning to the Doctor. “Quick, make coffee!” His yell turning into a squeal as the Doctor seized him under his arm and carried him out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.

Rose stayed in bed, a contented smile on her face as she spread out across the mattress. She was having great fun already. The caravan was nicer than the ones she’d stayed in as a child, but the feeling was the same. Tony had been overjoyed to find the second bedroom had two beds in it and had gleefully jumped from one to the other until the Doctor distracted him with a trip to the nearest shop. They’d spent the evening in the caravan, the Doctor enhancing the microwave while Rose and Tony attempted every board game they’d brought with them before getting bored and trying to build a tower of cards over the Doctor’s discarded shoes.

She looked up as the bedroom door opened and Tony led the way, carefully carrying a cup of coffee while the Doctor encouraged him to keep moving forward. She stepped out of the bed, leaning down to take the coffee before Tony could spill any and burn himself.

Tony grinned at her. “I made the coffee! All by myself!”

“Did you?”

“Well, the Doctor helped. I let him pour the water.”

“That was nice of you.”

“He needs the practice.” Tony informed her. “Will you get up now?”

“Well, someone hasn’t given me a kiss yet...”

An hour later they were heading down to the beach, Tony gripping Rose’s hand and telling her a story about the elephant he insisted he saw walk by the caravan while she had being getting dressed. The Doctor, hands in the pockets of his swim shorts, strolled along beside them. Rose had to fight the urge to giggle at the sight of him in flip-flops. It seemed far more alien to her than anything else about him; her Doctor with his feet not Converse-clad.

As soon as they reached the slope down to the sand Tony was pointing in the direction of the beach kiosk. “Can I please, please, please have a bucket and spade?”

Rose turned to the Doctor. “Can we please, please, please have some buckets and spades?”

The Doctor shrugged. “My money’s in your bag. Buy whatever you want.” Rose smiled and led Tony over to the kiosk, paying for the beach toys with her own money. Although the Doctor was earning money and had a bank account he was still very vague about how the whole thing worked. Rose tended to keep hold of his bankcard and any cash he had on him when they were together, he was inclined to either impulse buy or forget to pay for things and had absolutely no idea how much money he earned or what was in his account.

Three buckets (two blue, one red), three spades (all ‘alien’ green, according to Tony) and a beach ball all having been purchased they strolled across the sand, looking out for somewhere to stop. Tony raced ahead of them, picking a spot and hopping up and down until they reached him. “Here, let’s stop here!”

Once their belongs had been put down, towels laid out, and Tony had been suitably covered in factor fifty suntan lotion, the four year old demanded a sandcastle building competition.

After half an hour the Doctor had given up and was lying on his front beside them, pretending to judge the remaining contenders. Tony’s sandcastle was wobbly and simple, but somehow still managed to look more impressive than Rose’s, something he was sure he’d be in  
trouble later for pointing out.

A while after Tony had been declared winner of the sandcastle building competition Rose rolled over on her beach towel to look at the Doctor. His eyes were closed and Tony was sat beside him building another sandcastle. Rose watched the Doctor for a moment, his freckles were more pronounced in the summer sunshine, his t-shirt and sunglasses had long been discarded and he lay before her in nothing but his swim shorts; she was sure she would never get used to seeing so much of his skin, especially not in public. She leaned over, placing a soft kiss on the tip of his nose. He scrunched it up and opened his eyes. “Hello.”

“You alright, sleepy?”

“Mmhmm. Sunbathing.”

Rose laughed. “You’re going to burn like mad. You’ll regret it later.”

He propped himself up onto an elbow. “Well, you’ll just have to load me up with suntan lotion then, won’t you, Mrs Smith?” He had been using the name continuously since the reception had assumed they were married. It was going to be a running joke for a while, Rose was sure.

Rose laughed, reaching for the lotion in her bag. “You know, I wouldn’t take your name.”

“Why not?”

“Do you want a list?” She smeared suntan lotion in lines across his cheeks, generating a giggle from Tony.

“You look like an injun!”

The Doctor cocked an eyebrow. “An injun?”

Tony jumped to his feet and danced around Rose and the Doctor, waving his hand in front of his mouth. He was clearly enjoying making the grown-ups laugh and when he dropped down beside them again he held out a hand to Rose. “Injun me up please.”  
Laughing, Rose put two streaks of suntan lotion across her little brother’s face, then passed him the bottle so that he could do the same to her. The Doctor, suddenly bored of sunbathing, rubbed the lotion away from his cheeks, jumped to his feet and seized Rose’s sunhat from her head, plonking it on his own.

Tony squealed and climbed over Rose, hiding behind her. “Oh no! It’s a cowboy!”

“Oh no!” Rose raised a hand to her face in mock-horror. She Rose to her feet, shielding Tony from the ‘cowboy threat’.

“I don’t know why you’re hiding, Chief Tony! You should be defending your womenfolk!”

“Rose is more dangerous than I am!” He yelled, hands on his hips in a gesture that was all too reminiscent of Jackie.

“She’ll make a valuable slave, I think!” The Doctor took a step towards them.

Rose stepped towards them, drawing herself up to her full height. “I’m nobody’s slave.” She told him. Tony drew and invisible bow and arrow while Rose leaned forward, whispering into the Doctor’s ear. “But if you catch me, you might get rewarded.” She smirked and seized Tony’s hand, racing down the beach towards the sea, the Doctor in hot pursuit.

Reaching them in the water the Doctor made to pull Rose to him, stopping only when it dawned on him just how cold the water was. He yelped and jumped backwards, knocked off guard as both Rose and Tony threw themselves at him, he tumbled to the ground and lay back in the sand, laughing heartily. Tony held out a hand to help him up. Grinning, Doctor tugged Tony down to join him. “Ooh look, I’ve caught myself an Indian!”

“No, no, let me go!” Tony wriggled away as the Doctor tickled his arms. Rose stood over them, a smirk on her face.

“Oi, cowboy, you let go of my chief right now!”

The Doctor grinned up at her. “What happens if I don’t?”

“You find out exactly who is in charge.” The Doctor looked at Tony.

Tony looked at the Doctor. “You better do what she says.” And then, as an afterthought. “Daddy says girls are always in charge.”

The Doctor released Tony who scrambled up the beach again, diving onto Rose’s towel and covering it in sand as he pulled a carton of apple juice from her beach bag.

Down by the sea, the Doctor tugged himself to his feet and wrapped his arms around Rose’s waist. “So, what do I get now that I’ve captured my prize?”

“You didn’t really capture me, did you?”

“Didn’t I?” He kissed her fiercely and smirked as he drew back moments later. “Come on, I need a drink.”

“Wait.” Rose pulled him back to her, kissing him lightly. “Your ears are pink already.”

As the Doctor’s hands subconsciously went to his ears Rose began to walk up the beach, sitting beside her brother and pulling out a drink for herself. “You okay Tony?”

“Uh huh.”

“Good.”

Tony kneeled up and put a hand on her shoulder. “Rose?”

“Yeah?”

“I don’t think the Doctor will be a very good cowboy when he grows up.”

Rose laughed. “I don’t think so either.”

“He should pick something else.”

The Doctor flopped down on his own towel as Rose and Tony spoke. He held out his hand gratefully as Rose handed him a bottle of water. “What should I pick then?”

Tony shrugged. “Umm... footballer. Or magician. Or robber... or... or astronaut!”

“Or sex god?” Rose suggested with a grin.

Tony shook his head. “That’s not a thing.”

Rose poked Tony in the ribs lightly. She begged to differ; even with slightly pink skin the Doctor was definitely some sort of sexy.

They had intended to spend the evening in the family bar, allowing Tony to join in the kids’ songs and dancing before curling up on a seat for a nap while the adults enjoyed the evening’s entertainment; it had been a feature of Rose’s childhood holidays and she wanted Tony to experience it all, but by the time they left the restaurant after dinner Tony was dead on his feet. The early start and a day gallivanting about on the beach had worn him out, for now at least. The Doctor lifted him into his arms as they walked through the holiday park and Rose smiled as Tony rested his head upon the Doctor’s shoulder. She felt a sudden rush of love for them both and was about to mention something along those lines when her mobile phone rang.

“Hello? Mum?” Jackie quizzed Rose about their day, what had they eaten, was Tony behaving, was the Doctor behaving. She was surprised to hear that Tony was asleep, but Rose promised to let him call the next morning. The phone call continued all the way back to the caravan, the conversation turning to Jackie and Pete’s problems, it seemed they were at least talking to each other now and Rose hoped that when they returned whatever had gone on between them would be resolved. When she hung up she sought out her boys.

She found them in the second bedroom, Tony falling asleep where he sat while the Doctor unlaced his trainers. She smiled down at them.  
“I’ll pour us some drinks, yeah?”

The Doctor smiled back. “Yeah.”

“Night Tony.”

Tony blinked. “Nigh’ Rose.”

When the Doctor emerged ten minutes later, leaving the bedroom door ajar in case Tony needed them in the night, Rose wrapped her arms around the Doctor’s waist. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“All this, the holiday. Indulging me.” She couldn’t help feel that, despite everything, she had got pretty lucky.

The Doctor ran a thumb across her cheek softly. “I’m enjoying myself.”

“Good. Now, don’t I owe you a reward?”

The Doctor raised his eyebrows “Thought I didn’t catch you?”

“Are you complaining, cowboy?”


	3. Chapter 3

The Doctor carefully slid from the bed, determined not to wake Rose. He pulled on some pyjama bottoms over his boxer shorts and tiptoed out of the bedroom. Opening the caravan door, he stepped barefoot out onto the decking, leaning on the railing and looking out towards the sea. It was a warm morning and there were very few people about. A man pushing a pram nodded in his direction and the Doctor raised a hand in greeting. He turned his head back to the view, wondering how they would spend the rest of the day. This was all new to him, holidaying, and he was enjoying it.

He was brought out from his thoughts at the sound of the door behind him being pulled open. Turning, he saw Tony, already having attempted to dress himself.

He smiled at the small boy. “Hello.”

“Hello. It’s morning.”

“It is.” The Doctor moved his hand to Tony’s shoulder as he moved forward to stand beside him. “What shall we do today?”

Tony thought for a moment. “Where’s Rose?”

“Asleep.”

“We should wake Rose up.”

“No, I think Rose is quite sleepy.”

Tony nodded. “The beach must have made her tired.”

The Doctor smiled at him. “We could go take a look at what’s happening at the kids’ club? Let Rose have a lie in?”

Tony perked up at this, wandering back into the caravan and grabbing the brochure they’d been given on arrival. “What’s it say?” He asked, excited.

The Doctor took the brochure from him, flicking through it until he reached the children’s entertainment section. “It says ‘Join The Greencoats for a great hour of crazy golf.’ How does that sound?”

“Fun!” Tony grinned.

“Right then. We’ve got an hour, why don’t I make us some breakfast while you put your t-shirt on the right way around?”

Tony brought his hand to his mouth in shock and ran into his bedroom to get changed. The Doctor slid back into the room he was sharing with Rose and quietly undressed. As he rifled through one of the drawers beneath the wardrobe Rose blinked awake, and he turned at the sound of her voice.

“Lovely view. Don’t even think about putting any clothes on.”

He laughed as he pulled a pair of shorts from the drawer and tugged them on. “Go back to sleep.”

“Where y’going..?”

“I’m taking Tony to play crazy golf, you stay in bed.”

Rose smiled at him cheekily. “Only if you promise not to put a t-shirt on.”

The Doctor came around the bed, a smirk on his lips. “It’s not that warm Rose.”

“I don’t know, I think it’s pretty hot in here.”

Grinning, the Doctor ducked his head to kiss her and then walked from the room, pulling a t-shirt over his head as he did so.

Tony was outside the door, his hands on his hips. “You woke Rose up,” he accused.

“She’s going back to sleep. Come on, breakfast!”

“Can’t you be quiet for five minutes?”

Twenty minutes later the Doctor led Tony into the room designated ‘Ozzie’s Den’ and walked over to a young lad in a green coat. “Hello.”

“Hi.”

“We want to sign Tony in for crazy golf.” He grinned. Tony waved with his free hand.

“Right you are,” the guy smiled at Tony. “Are you Tony then?” Tony nodded. “Hello. I’m Jim.”

“Hello Jim.”

“How old are you, Tony?”

“I’m four.” Tony grinned and tugged his hand away from the Doctor’s in a bid to show just how grown up he was.

“Four? Really?” Jim smiled. “Is this your daddy?”

Tony pulled a face. “No. That’s the Doctor.”

“The Doctor?” Jim looked bemused.

The Doctor held out a hand to shake Jim’s. “John Smith. The Doctor’s a sort of nickname. I’m Tony’s... well, brother-in-law I suppose.”

“Oh right.” Jim shook the Doctor’s hand and looked at Tony. “The, err, Doctor’s going to have to come play crazy golf with us. Is that okay?”

“Not going if he doesn’t.” Tony replied.

“Right, good. Why don’t you go and say hello to the other children while we get you signed in?”

Tony took off happily in the direction of a group of children around his own age. The Doctor laughed as he introduced himself by shaking each of their hands. He turned back to Jim and filled in the necessary paperwork and ten minutes later found himself following behind the group of youngsters who were being led towards the crazy golf course by four greencoats and a man dressed as an otter. There were two mums walking along with him, as well as the man he’d seen pushing the pram earlier. He sunk his hands into the pockets of his shorts and checked to make sure Tony was still enjoying himself. He was walking in front, chatting animatedly to a boy with spiked blonde hair.

By the time the hour and a half of kids’ club was up Tony appeared to have made several friends. He practically danced over to the Doctor, gripping his hand tightly. “Doc-tor.” He dragged the word out.

“Have fun?”

“Yes!” He swung the Doctor’s arm back and forth and looked up at him, excitement clearly threatening to bubble over. “Doctor, I know what I want to do today!” He grinned.

“You do? What is it?”

“I want to go to Crealy!” He beamed.

The Doctor thought back to the pile of leaflets they had acquired on the first day, remembering Crealy as an Adventure Park not too far away. “Crealy? I think we can manage that.”

“Josh went!” He pointed to the blonde boy he’d been talking to earlier. “He said it’s a-maz-ing.”

“Right oh, well let’s go tell Rose where we’re going shall we?”

Rose had lain in bed for another half an hour before getting up, dressing and tidying up the mess her boys had made at breakfast. It was too quiet without them around and she found herself constantly glancing at her watch. When the door opened and Tony sped into the caravan Rose jumped to her feet, moving to the door and allowing the Doctor to kiss her hello.

“Hey, you have fun?”

“I did. Are you ready to go out?” He rested his hands on her waist.

“Out?”

“Yeah, I told Tony we could go to an adventure park.”

Rose turned to look at Tony, who had disappeared into his bedroom and returned with a baseball cap on his head and a jumper in his hand. “Is that right?”

“Uh huh.” Tony tilted his head to one side, looking hopeful. “We can, can’t we?”

“Well, I suppose so. If the Doctor’s paying.”

Tony turned to look at the Doctor. “Please?”

Laughing, the Doctor nodded and picked up the car keys from the coffee table. “Shall we?”

As they walked through the entrance to Crealy Adventure Park, Tony didn’t know where to look. Rose’s eyes were on her little brother as he walked ahead of the adults, staring in wonderment at everything around him. He wandered over to a large scale version of the map the Doctor held in his hand and gaped at it.

He turned to look at Rose. “I don’t know what I want to do first.”

Smiling, Rose ruffled his hair lightly. “How about I choose?”

“Nowhere pink.” Tony insisted as Rose studied the map.

She felt the Doctor’s hand on her hip, his head resting on her shoulder. “I think we should go to Action Realm.”

Rose turned to her brother. “What d’you think, Tony?”

Tony nodded and slid one hand into each of his carers’. They walked quietly around the park, Tony too in awe to speak, Rose drifting off into a world of her own and the Doctor carefully watching them both. He had become even more captivated by Rose in the last three days. He smiled at her when she looked his way and resisted the urge to tell her how much he loved her. Sometimes his human emotions got the better of him.

Tony pulled his hand away when they entered the Action Realm, pointing at a go-kart track. “Can we?” He asked, excited.

The Doctor shrugged. “Why not?”

They walked towards the track where two separate queues were marked out. One for single cars, one for doubles. Tony tugged them towards the singles queue. The Doctor stopped him “Tony...”

“What?”

The Doctor laid a hand on his shoulder. “You’re not going to be able to drive one.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’re not allowed.”

Tony looked like he might cry and the Doctor looked helplessly at Rose as the four year old shuffled his feet. “Please?”

Rose squatted down beside her brother. “Sorry, Tony, you have to be ten, but you can pick who you go in with. Me or the Doctor.”

Tony lifted his head after a few seconds. “Doctor.”

“Charming.” Rose said, faking offence.

“You’ll be easier to beat.” Tony told her, fighting back a smile.

Rose took Tony’s baseball cap from his head, putting it in her bag and moved into the queue for single karts, while Tony hauled the Doctor into the doubles queue. They reached the front of their respective queues at about the same time and were loaded into the go-karts. Tony was practically writhing with excitement beside the Doctor. “We’ve got to do more times round than Rose.”

“Oh, we will, don’t worry about that.” The Doctor beamed at him and, at the signal from the ride supervisor, they were racing down the track. Tony stuck his tongue out in delight as they overtook Rose, only to sulk seconds later when she raced past them.

“Faster, Doctor, faster!” They continued for another five minutes before the karts came to a halt, as the walked away from the track Tony was bouncing excitedly with the joy that they had been round the track fourteen times. Rose didn’t have the heart to tell him she’d done sixteen laps.

“Where to now, speed king?” She asked with a grin.

“Bumper Boats!” Tony said, pointing in the direction a ride labelled Dino Blasters. They walked over and Rose looked at Tony.

“Oh, you’re going to have to come in with me. We’re going to soak the Doctor.”

The Doctor, who had once again been lost in thought as he watched Rose and Tony walk along beside him, suddenly looked up. “Hey!”

When they left the Dino Blasters some time later the Doctor was, indeed, drenched. Rose and Tony had made bumping into him their mission and he had barely managed to recover before they crashed into him again each time. He sulked as he shook out his wet t-shirt. Rose kissed his shoulder lightly. “Cheer up, cowboy.” She winked and he grinned at her, catching her lips with his before Tony voiced an objection that had them heading around the rest of the Action Realm without their lips meeting again.

After he tired of the Action Realm, Tony led them into the Magic Realm, while the Doctor attempted to explain what ‘realm’ actually meant, and launched into a story about the creation of the board game Talisman, at which point Rose prodded him firmly in the ribs, wondering how she had ever handled his constant babbling.

In the Magic Realm Tony dragged Rose onto the Prince’s Train while the Doctor took photographs for Jackie’s album and then raced around the Treetops Playground while Rose and the Doctor sat on a nearby bench, keeping a watchful eye on him with their hands entwined. Rose felt the urge to thank him again, but decided against it; if she kept thanking him he’d tire of it and he might even stop being so brilliant.

Tony waved to them from the top of a slide and Rose took a quick picture for her mum as he slid down. Rose had called Jackie from the car and, after she had spoken to Tony for ten minutes, she had requested they take as many photos as they could, so the camera was staying at hand for the moment. As Tony hit the woodchip at the bottom he raced over to them with a smile on his face. “Rose, I’m hungry.”

“Me too, actually.” The Doctor commented.

“We’d better eat then, hadn’t we?” Rose said, rising to her feet and tugging the Doctor up with her. “Let’s see where we can get some food.”

Tony pointed out the nearby Fantasy Cafe and after they’d been fed and watered, was dragging them off again overenthusiastically.

This time they visited the Action Realm, where the Doctor insisted on riding the rollercoaster, and came off looking a little green. He opted to watch as Rose and Tony rode the pirate ship, but he could hear them singing pirate songs at the top of their voices as sat on a bench near the entrance. They rode the log flume together and the Doctor purchased three copies of the photo they had taken.

Rose raised an eyebrow. “Three?”

“One for Jackie, one for our flat and one for my lab.” He looked a little sheepish.

Rose smiled. “You’re adorable.”

Next up was the Adventure Zone; an indoor playground for both adults and children. They spent a good an hour and a half in there, including ten minutes laughing in the ball pool as the Doctor struggled to get back onto his feet. They left only when Tony, having braved one of the plastic slides, had gained a friction burn just below his elbow that had brought him to tears. The Doctor had sat him on his knee, promising the stinging would stop soon, while Rose had kissed it better and told him a story about an alien that was colourful as the Adventure Zone’s various play equipment. He had snuggled into the Doctor’s chest while he listened to the story, but when it was over he slid off his lap and onto his own feet.

“Can we go and see the animals, please?” He asked quietly.

Rose nodded. “Of course.”

They took a slow walk around the Animal Zone, Tony kept a tight hold on his sister’s hand, only being drawn away when one of the animal wranglers enticed him to hold a rabbit. By the time they had finished their journey around the animal section, Tony had perked up enough to enjoy a pony ride, after which he looked as though he was ready to head home, just as an announcement came over the tanoy that the park would be closing in half an hour.

After a brief visit to the shop – Tony chose a mug for each of his parents – they headed back to the car. During the short drive back to the holiday park Tony asked them if they could go to the dancing with Ozzie the Otter that he had found out about that morning. Josh, he told them, had said it was lots of fun.

Rose and the Doctor readily agreed and, after they had eaten, shower and changed, they headed down to the Waves bar, where the Doctor bought drinks while a game of bingo was finished off, before Ozzie the Otter himself appeared and Tony was on his feet like a shot, joining little Josh and a group of the other children from that morning on the dance floor.

Rose and the Doctor watched as he joined in the dances for Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes, I Am The Music Man and I’m Bringing Home A Baby Bumblebee. Rose was surprised to notice that she remembered most of the dances. The Doctor laughed when she revealed this and pecked her lips softly. “That I’d like to see.”

Moments later his wish came true as The Greencoats announced that every child needed to have an adult dance with them. Tony hauled his sister to her feet and pulled her onto the dance floor for The Purple People Eater. The Doctor’s initial amusement at watching Rose and Tony dance to the song faded into puzzlement as he listened to the lyrics of the song and, when Rose returned to the table, Tony by her side, he looked a whole universe away. Tony slid into his chair without noticing but Rose rubbed at his shoulder gently. “Doctor?”

“Hmm?”

“You okay? You look a bit far away.”

The Doctor nodded. “I was just thinking.”

“What about that?”

“That song... that Purple People Eater...”

“One eyed, one horned, flying purple people eater!” Tony exclaimed from the other side of the table. He was on his knees and the straw into his coke bottle was hovering in front of his mouth.

“Yeah, that one. It’s a bit... accurate.”

“Accurate how?” Rose asked, sinking into the seat beside him.

“Well, just... the people of Filan are purple, well, sort of magenta really, but close enough. About two, three hundred years ago they were attacked by a race of, well, one eyed, one horned aliens from Kir’ath...”

Rose looked doubtful. “Are you making that up?”

The Doctor blinked. “Would I?”

Tony leaned further forward in his chair. “I want to be a purple people eater when I grow up.”

“Do you?” The Doctor humoured.

“Uh huh. I want to be an alien like you.”

“Tony...” Rose scolded.

“Josh doesn’t even believe me that you’re an alien.”

“Tony, you’ve got to stop telling people that the Doctor’s an alien.”

“But he is.” Tony sighed, waving his arms in the air. “Mummy said so.”

At that moment Rose was saved an argument by the Greencoats calling the children – and their adults – back up for another song. Tony pulled the Doctor forward this time. Rose had seen many things with the Doctor, some unbelievable, some bizarre, some hilarious. But nothing came close to the sight of her half-alien, half-human lover dancing to The Court of King Caractacus with her four year old brother. She reached for the camera and pressed record; this was not going be forgotten any time soon.


	4. Chapter 4

By Thursday the Doctor had become badly sunburnt. Rose had so far resisted the urge to laugh at him, although Tony had told Jackie that he looked like a lobster. The Doctor had taken it in good humour , but Rose knew he wasn’t enjoying the sunburn. Lying next to him in bed she sighed as he turned over for the fourteenth time that night.

He sat up. “I’m sorry. I can’t get comfy.”

“It’s okay.” Rose sat up and rested her head against his shoulder; he moved away as she touched his sunburn and she momentarily regretted persuading him to keep his shirt off when they had returned to the beach the day before. “Shall I get you some more aftersun?”

“No, I’m fine.”

Rose placed a kiss where her head had been. “C’mon, get your top off.”

“Are you trying to get me naked, Rose Tyler?” He raised an eyebrow in the dark.

“Not Mrs Smith?”

“Not right now.”

Laughing, Rose reached over to the bedside table and flicked on the lamp. “Top off.”

“So demanding.” He tugged his pyjama top over his head and threw it to the bottom of the bed, while Rose grabbed the bottle of aftersun. 

She sat back for a second, taking in his reddened torso. “I’ll be gentle.”

The Doctor smirked. “I’m sure you will.”

Rose shook her head and began to apply the aftersun to his shoulders. He flinched as her hands came in contact with his warm skin but before long he was relaxing at her touch. She moved around the bed, rubbing the lotion into his back.

When she was finished, he turned his head to kiss her. “Thank you.”

Rose smiled and came back around him to return the kiss properly. He smiled against her lips. “You know, sometimes I really hate being human-”

“Don’t...”

“It’s okay, I was just going to say. Sometimes I love it.” Any response Rose could have generated was cut off by his lips on hers again. “Sometimes I really love it.”

Rose squealed as he pushed her backwards, her legs flailing enough to knock the bottle of aftersun from the bed with a thump. Neither of them noticed it fall.

When Rose woke up again she could hear the shower running, the Doctor clearly trying to ease the sting of his sunburn. She stretched out in the bed, thinking back to the night before. The Doctor had distracted her from commenting, but she was a little worried by the idea that he still hated being human at times. She knew it hadn’t been easy for him, but she had honestly believed he was coming to terms with things. Maybe he was, maybe she was overreacting. Either way, she did have to agree with him, sometimes she really loved the fact that he was human now. The barriers he had erected as a Time Lord were long gone, replaced by an intimacy so intense she wondered if she’d ever really be able to breathe in his presence.

She was brought out of her contemplation by Tony’s head appearing around the bedroom door. “Rose,” he whispered, “I made a mess.” He glanced down at the floor a little guiltily.

Rose sat up, keeping the covers wrapped around her body and silently cursing her decision not to get dressed again before she had drifted back to sleep last night. “What sort of mess?”

“I wanted to make breakfast, but I couldn’t reach.” He looked so sad that Rose found herself desperate to hug him.

“You should have knocked sweetheart, I would have made you breakfast.”

“Not breakfast for me! Breakfast for you. And the Doctor.” Rose’s heart swelled for her little brother, standing in the doorway in his Spiderman pyjamas looking heartbroken that his surprise had gone wrong. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. Why don’t you go and pick where you want to go today while I get dressed? Then we can tidy up the breakfast, yeah?”

Tony nodded sadly and slipped from the room. Rose hastily dressed, joining Tony on the sofa seconds later. He held out a leaflet for the House of Marbles. “Please?”

Rose looked it over. “Why not?”

“Am I in trouble?”

Rose pulled him into a tight hug and placed a kiss on the top of his head. “Of course not.”

“I wanted to say thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank us, Tony. We’re having fun.”

Tony grinned up at her. “I don’t want to go home. Except, I miss Mummy and Daddy a bit.”

“Do you? Shall we phone Mummy?”

“After breakfast!”

“Okay, let’s you and me clean up the kitchen and make breakfast for all of us. And we can tell the Doctor you did it all by yourself.”

It was hard for Rose to work out who was more excited about being in the marble factory; Tony or the Doctor. They turned to grin at each other as the guide led them into the viewing gallery of the glass blowing room. Tony leaned against the railing excitedly, watching the man work below. He gaped excitedly and Rose slid a hand into the Doctor’s.

He placed a soft kiss on her cheek. “You know, the first marbles weren’t even made of glass. Ancient Egyptians had clay marbles. There’s a story for you,” he looked at Rose lovingly and she was reminded how much she missed the way he would explain everything to her, “but it was a German glassblower who actually invented marble scissors. 1846. Or, at least, he was the one that got the credit. But you know me, always modest.”

Rose smiled. “Sure you are.”

Tony turned to look at them. “Do I have any pocket money left, Rose?” Jackie had given him his week’s pocket money before they had set off for Devon.

“I think so, yeah.” He had actually spent it all days ago, but she had no objection to buying him a few presents here and there. She knew she was spoiling him, but she couldn’t help it.

“I want to buy some marbles.” He turned to the Doctor. “If I buy marbles, will you play with me?”

“Me? I think Rose is probably better at it.”

“But I don’t want to lose.”

Rose laughed and held out a hand for Tony, leading her boys away from the glass blowing room and into the Marble Museum, where the Doctor discredited almost every statement made by the signs in front of each exhibit and Rose reminded him they were in a parallel universe and there was a very high chance that these signs were accurate. Tony had taken the Doctor’s side when bribed with a fifty pence piece.

Tony had been fascinated by the six marble runs that the House of Marbles was home to, and told Rose he was going to ask Pete to fill a room at the Tyler mansion with a marble run. Rose was sure that one would be installed by the time Tony’s fifth birthday rolled around.

They slipped into the Old Pottery Restaurant for lunch, before Tony dragged them into the factory shop. There were literally thousands of marbles on sale and they purchased more than Tony could possibly ever want or need.

He talked excitedly all the way back to the caravan and the second they were in the door he rifled through their carrier bags, pulling jars of marbles and lining them up on the table excitedly. As Rose put the kettle on there was a knock on their caravan door.

Bemused, the Doctor walked to the door and answered it. “Hello.”

Josh, the boy Tony had met at kids’ club stood at the door with his mother. Tony had seen Josh at least once every day since Monday. “Is Tony here?” Josh asked, excited.

“He is. He’s just bought some marbles, would you like to come in and see?”

“Yes please!” Josh ducked under the Doctor’s arm and beamed at Tony as he stepped through the door. “Hello!”

The Doctor turned back to Josh’s mum. “Everything okay?”

“Yes, fine. I was just coming round to invite Tony for tea, actually. It’s Josh’s sister’s birthday and we’re having a little party for her in our caravan. Didn’t want Josh to be the only boy there.”

“Oh, right.” The Doctor looked at her for a moment. “It’s not really up to me. Hang on.” He turned in the doorway. “Rose?”

“Yeah?”

“Josh’s mum wanted to know if Tony would like to go to a tea party.”

Rose moved to the door and began to talk to Josh’s mother, while the Doctor retreated back into the caravan to see what the boys were up to.

Rose came over a moment later. “Tony, would you like to go to Josh’s caravan for a tea party?”

Tony looked at his sister for a moment, then at the Doctor, and back to Rose. “Do I have to?”

“Well, no. But don’t you want to have fun with Josh?”

“Yes. But he can have a tea party here, can’t he?”

“I don’t know about that...” Rose said. “Josh would have to ask his mum.”

An hour later Rose found herself with three boys to keep track of as Josh’s mum bade them goodbye. She had seemed so relieved at the opportunity to have one less child running around at the tea party that Rose had offered to let Josh stay the night. The boys had been overjoyed at the prospect and had been practically bouncing ever since Josh’s mother had brought a rucksack of overnight things round for him.

The Doctor, to his credit, was being brilliant. He had taught the boys how to play marbles and they were now suitably entertained. He had also insisted on buying them a takeaway pizza from the restaurant in the holiday park and had spent the last ten minutes sat on the sofa keeping an eye on the children while she had phoned her mother. Any homesickness Tony had been feeling was long forgotten now that he had a friend to play with and the Doctor had been quite insistent that he had no urge to speak to Jackie.

Rose slid onto the sofa beside the Doctor once her phone call was finished, resting her head against his chest. He smiled. “Hello.”

“Hi,” Rose looked up at him. “I love you.”

The Doctor looked surprised. “I love you too.” He paused. “What was that for?”

“I just... I’m glad that we’re happy.”

“I’m glad too. How’s your mum?” He stroked her hair softly, his eyes flicking momentarily to the boys.

“She’s okay. She says they’ve just about finished making up.”

The Doctor smiled. “Good. Now... have you ever been in charge of a sleepover before?”

Rose laughed. “It’s not really a sleepover. You’ve no idea what a proper sleepover’s like. Five or six pre-teen girls. Oh, just you wait.”

“Wait for what?”

Rose paused, suddenly realising what she’d said. “Oh, nothing.”

“Rose?”

“I was just... thinking out loud.” She gave the Doctor a sideways glance. Spending time with Tony had changed her perspective of their future, but one thing she had learnt was that, with the Doctor, you could never assume anything. Having children together, however far into the future, wasn’t something she had considered before now. With the Doctor, even her half human version, a normal, human life wasn’t necessarily on the cards. She didn’t imagine he’d considered it, even now.

The Doctor was quiet for a minute or two, his fingers still running through her hair. “I think I could handle a proper sleepover, you know. How hard can it be?”

Rose laughed at his naivety. “Oh, you really do have no idea. You ask my mum when we get back.”

“You want me to talk to _Jackie_?”


	5. Chapter 5

It was eleven o’clock by the time Rose had managed to get the boys to settle down. They had been up most of the night giggling and telling each other stories. When they had finally settled she’d joined the Doctor on the sofa, he was all but asleep, exhausted after his restless night the night before. He lifted his head to rest it on her lap and had drifted off to sleep as she ran her fingers through her hair.

When they woke up the next morning to the sound of marbles rolling off a table, Rose had a crick in her neck. She had slept where she was sat, not wanting to wake or move the Doctor. She shifted the Doctor’s head slightly and looked over at the boys. “What’re you doing?” She whispered.

“Counting.”

“Try not to wake the Doctor, Tony.”

The Doctor shifted his head back across Rose’s lap. “M’awake.”

“Oh, good. Sit up, will you?” The Doctor did as she asked, leaning forward a bit bleary eyed as Rose stood and walked over to the kettle. “Tea?”

“Oh, please.” He rubbed his eyes and looked over at Tony and Josh. They had started to line up the marbles and were indeed counting them. “You two having fun?”

“Uh huh.”

The Doctor glanced up at the clock, silently cursing his human body. His time sense hadn’t completely faded but when he was tired or distracted it was difficult for him to focus on just what time it was. They had another hour before Josh’s mum was due to come pick him up, so he decided they should set about making breakfast. He stood, crossing the caravan to the kitchen and kissing Rose’s cheek when he arrived.

“What d’you want to eat boys?”

Josh’s mother arrived to pick him up a while later, she gave Rose their contact details so that they could arrange a play date after their holiday had ended and Josh waved happily as they left. “Bye Tony! Bye Doctor! By Mrs Smith!”

The Doctor smirked at the latter, laying a soft kiss on Rose’s lips. “I think it’s catching on.”

“Oh, I hope not.” Rose joked, poking him in the ribs affectionately.

She moved into the bedroom to get dressed and Tony began to help the Doctor fill a rucksack with drinks and a first aid kit. They had decided to go on a short walk over a hill to a nearby town, where they would be able to pick up some souvenirs and presents for Jackie and Pete and find a nice pub for their last holiday lunch.

Rose appeared in the doorway, watching them. The Doctor eyed her for a moment, she was in shorts and a t-shirt and he found his eyes travelling slowly up her legs and he blinked twice before turning his attention back to her face. She was smirking at him and he knew he’d been caught staring. But then again, he thought, he was allowed to stare. It was just other people that weren’t.

“Right, Team Tyler. Shall we get going? Hike into the wilderness!”

Rose shook her head and held out a hand for Tony. “It’s not a hike, it’s just a little walk.”

Tony led the way out of the caravan. “Rose, will we go past a farm?”

“I don’t know, we might.”

“I hope we do.” Rose and Tony stood at the foot of the stairs as the Doctor locked the caravan door and then the three headed out of the holiday park, following the route they had marked out. Rose had decided that playing it by ear when they had a four year old in tow was probably not the wisest way of doing things.

By the time they had reached the top of the hill Rose felt exhausted, she flopped down onto the grass and Tony sat happily beside her. She looked up at the Doctor hopefully. “Water?”

“Hang on.” He pulled the rucksack off his back and sat down on Rose’s other side. “God, I’m not as fit as I used to be.”

“One heart.” Rose reminded him.

“Mmhmm.” He tugged a bottle of water for each of them from the bag and they sat quietly for a moment, catching their breath.

Tony wriggled forward and scratched at his ankles. “I have an itch!”

“Let me see.” The Doctor said, “I’m a doctor.”

“You’re not a real doctor.” Tony told him, but held out his leg anyway.

“Looks like you’ve been stung by a stinging nettle.”

“I don’t like it.”

The Doctor looked thoughtful. “We might have to chop it off.”

Tony snapped his leg back immediately, curling into Rose. “Do something!”

“If we can find some dock leaves we could rub that on it. It’ll stop it itching. Or I think we might have some magic cream in the first aid kid.” Rose turned to the Doctor expectantly and he pulled the box out, rifling through it for witch hazel and handing it to Rose. He watched as Rose tenderly applied the lotion to Tony’s stings. She turned to look at the Doctor. “We should’ve put some of this on your sunburn.”

“Ouch, no thanks.”

“Maybe we’ll have to chop off all your burnt bits, Doctor.” Rose was grinning at him, her tongue poking out through her teeth.

When they eventually reached the town they walked about quietly, Rose’s hand in the Doctor’s while Tony bounced along beside them. They moved in and out of a dozen or so shops, buying presents for Jackie and Pete, sticks of rock for Tony’s friends and holiday gifts for their workmates. Rose rested her head against the Doctor’s shoulder and squeezed his hand.

He smiled down at her. “I could do this forever.”

“What? Walk around the shops?” She laughed. “That’s the Donna in you.”

He rolled his eyes. “Be on holiday. Me, you and Tony. Or, y’know, other kids,” he caught her expression, “one day. Not today.”

Rose smiled. “Yeah, me too,” she looked up at him, “we could always bring Tony again another time. Or... other kids.” She nodded.

“Let’s get some lunch.” The Doctor said suddenly, decisively. Tony hopped back to them and slid a hand into the Doctor’s free one as he led them into a nearby pub. They walked out to the back and took seats at a picnic table in the beer garden. After they had all chosen their meals the Doctor headed back into the pub to order and Tony looked at Rose curiously.

“Rose?” He tipped his head to one side.

“Yeah?”

“Do you think if I asked nicely Mummy would let me have a little brother?”

“Oh, I don’t know sweetheart.”

Tony looked at her for a moment. “Where do you get little brothers?”

“I think you should save that question to ask Daddy.”

“You don’t know either?” Tony asked. Resigned to the fact that he wasn’t going to get any helpful answers out of his sister, he picked up the menu and started to point out the desserts he thought looked yummiest, just as the Doctor came back, struggling to keep hold of the three drinks he had purchased. He slid down beside Tony on the bench, handing him a lemonade.

Tony grinned. “Thank you.”

The Doctor handed Rose the coke she’d asked for and placed a glass of beer down in front of himself. He had taken to trying a different alcoholic drink every time he was in a pub, he insisted it was a scientific experiment, to see what effect different alcoholic drinks would have on his human physiology. Rose let him get on with it.

It was halfway through their meal that Tony, who had been quietly pondering since his drink arrived, spoke up again. “Rose?”

“Yeah?”

“What about big brothers?”

Rose looked puzzled. “What about big brothers, Tony?”

“Where do you get big brothers from?”

“You’re sort of... born with them, sweetheart. Like how you were born with a big sister.”

“Oh,” he looked a little disappointed, “I’ll ask Daddy about a little brother instead.”

“Yeah, you’ll see him tomorrow. You can speak to him then.”

When they returned from their visit to the seaside town Rose put Tony straight in the bath, as they’d walked through a field on their way back he had found a muddy puddle to jump in and his legs were filthy. While Rose supervised bath time The Doctor began to round up their belongings, putting them into their respective suitcases. They were planning to set off after breakfast the next day and he wanted to get the car loaded up before they went to bed. Some days he missed TARDIS travel a lot more than others.

Once Tony was settled in bed Rose joined The Doctor, putting their bags of shopping and dirty washing into piles beside the door while The Doctor moved it all to the car. He slid their suitcase beside Tony’s in the back of the car and turned to look at Rose standing in the caravan doorway. He smiled, closed the boot and walked up to her, wrapping an arm around her waist.

“So, home tomorrow.”

Rose lay her head on his chest. “Yeah.”

“I’ve had a great time.”

“Mm, me too.”

“I... Rose?”

She lifted her head to look at him. “Yeah?”

“I want to... to talk to you. About, well, all of this Mr and Mrs stuff we’ve been playing around with...”

“Doctor, I’m not expecting you to drop down on one knee, if that’s what you’re worrying about.” She cupped his cheek softly and he grinned.

“I’m not going to.” He told her.

“I know, it’s not very you.”

“That’s what I’m saying, Rose. This Mr and Mrs stuff. It could, you know... it could be very us.”

Rose stepped back, her mouth hanging open a little. “Are you...?”

The Doctor shrugged. “I might be.”

“Really?”

“Really.” He grinned as Rose wrapped her arms around him tightly and lifted her head for a kiss. His lips met hers instantly. “Are you...?”

“I’m still not taking your name.”


End file.
